Name suppression for student who drowned

Hawke's Bay rescue services searching Waitangi Lagoon for the 16-year-old international student who drowned on Saturday. Photo / Duncan Brown

A coroner has granted an application for the interim suppression of the name of the 16-year-old international student who drowned in Hawke's Bay last weekend.

The application was lodged by the teenager's father and granted by Coroner Gordon Matenga, pending an opportunity for the family to take further legal advice or allow the application to lapse.

The teenager disappeared while swimming in a sheltered arm of an the Waitangi Lagoon near where water from the Ngaruroro, Tutaekuri and Clive rivers enter the sea on Saturday afternoon during an outing with his host family.

His body was recovered the next day.

Mr Matenga said the father did not give a reason for the request but he inferred the family were "so overcome with grief that they did not wish that grief to be made public in any way".

He said: "Whilst I can appreciate the grief that (the parents) must be feeling at the moment I am mindful that the openness of justice principles are continually echoed through New Zealand courts and that the winds of publicity should blow freely." The suppression will lapse on December 24 at 4pm if no further application is made.

Taradale High School principal Stephen Hensman released a statement which said: "The sadness that accompanied the news that an international student was drowned in the weekend was made all more poignant for us when we learnt yesterday that he had pre-enrolled to attend Taradale High School next year.

"He had visited the school recently with his agent, where staff found him to be a lovely young man. Our sincere condolences go to his family and friends, his host family, and to Horizon College."

New Horizon College chairman Ewen Mackenzie-Bowie said on Monday that the hearts of people at the English language school "go out to his homestay family, who welcomed him into their home two months ago".

He said the school was traumatised but was trying to "progress back towards normality in due course".